South Korea weighs reform of permanent CI identity numbers after breaches

South Korean lawmakers are reviewing the Connecting Information (CI) identifier, a permanent number used across websites that cannot normally be changed. The review follows CI leaks at seven companies in the past year, including TVING, CU Courier and Woori Bank; regulators are considering a right to renew CI and a one-to-three-year validity period, but no implementation plan has been finalized.

• CI is an 88-byte number created by encrypting a resident registration number
• CI leaks hit seven companies in a year, including Woori Bank
• Proposed rules include a right to renew CI and 1–3 year validity
• The review has run about a year with no finalized plan